Charities Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) and the Stroke Association have come together to call for the expansion of thrombectomy services to reduce health inequalities for stroke survivors across Scotland.
Thrombectomy is a clot removal treatment that can vastly improve outcomes for eligible stroke survivors when administered within the recommended timeframe.
People who have an ischaemic stroke and receive a thrombectomy are three times more likely to be able to lead an independent life.
However, due to the lack of a national thrombectomy service, nearly 1000 Scots who would have been eligible missed out on the chance of receiving this treatment last year, resulting in poorer recovery outcomes.
In fact, only 153 people in Scotland received the treatment in 2023.
The organisations are calling on the Scottish Government to invest some of the additional £1bn allocated to the block grant Westminster to ensure that every stroke patient in Scotland eligible for thrombectomy can have it, regardless of where they live or what day of the week or time of day they have their stroke.
Jane-Claire Judson Chief Executive of Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland said: “We know that the Scottish Government understands that stroke care is a priority, but the lack of progress in rolling out a national thrombectomy service is having a devastating effect on the lives of those missing out.
“To be most effective, thrombectomy should be carried out in a matter of hours from the onset of stroke.
“People are experiencing stroke at all hours of the day or night, weekday or weekend, so we would expect this treatment to be readily available across the country.
“However, at present access to thrombectomy varies widely from region to region, with NHS Lothian currently the only health board in Scotland that offers thrombectomy treatment at the weekend.
“It is unacceptable that Scotland should be lagging so far behind other countries in the delivery of this essential treatment.
“Thrombectomy is now no longer a cutting-edge procedure.
“It is a vital part of stroke treatment worldwide and yet Scotland’s rates are lower than anywhere in England, and despite the current war in Ukraine, the country still manages to do proportionally more thrombectomies per year than Scotland.”
John Watson, Associate Director for the Stroke Association in Scotland, added: “Thrombectomy saves brains, lives and money. It can change the course of recovery from stroke in an instant and is one of the most effective medical interventions ever developed.
“We understand the financial pressure the Government is under, but it’s short-sighted to mire a National Thrombectomy Service in arguments about pressures on the NHS – financial or otherwise.
“We believe improving stroke care is part of the solution to the current NHS crisis. If you get stroke care right, you get many other things right too.
“Thrombectomy is a powerful intervention that can reduce the risk of severe disability, and relieve pressure on the overstretched health and care system.”
